Harbour View Centre

Site History
One of the first Brownfield sites redeveloped in the County, the Harborview building rests upon property once used for manufactured gas plant (MGP) coal gasification, a bulk petroleum terminal, a railroad switching operation and a heavy truck repair facility. Contaminants such as arsenic, cyanide, coal tar, benzo[a]pyrene, diesel fuel, gasoline and kerosene were all present at this development site at one time or another. Some of the land uses (and contamination), such as MGP and fuel terminal uses date back so far that they predate the community's use of electricity.

Redevelopment
The Brownfield plan provided an incentive package sufficient for a developer to address this ancient contamination. In addition to transactional incentives used to exempt the developer from liability, the due care eligible activities pursued removed soil contamination from the surface where the public was exposed to health risks on a daily basis. Removal and disposal of soil at a licensed landfill was accomplished as well as the demolition of structures with lead and asbestos impacts. The Brownfield plan also provided an avenue to secure a Michigan Clean-up & Redevelopment loan in the amount of $269,535.00 through the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality with terms sufficient to entice the developer into early and effective clean-up actions.

Project Success
Nearly $13 million in private investment occurred and over 100 new jobs were created. Once the site of a coal gasification facility, this property has been transformed into a beautiful four story mixed use building that overlooks Grand Traverse Bay. As of 2009, it has a taxable value of more than $5.6 million. This project will be completed in 2027. The State and the Traverse Bay Intermediate School District (TBISD) will recognize the increase in tax revenue at the end of the Brownfield plan. The TBISD received $1,243.42 in yearly taxes in 1999. In 2012, the yearly tax revenues for the TBISD are projected to be $17,616.